Thorns
by MsDocTimeLady
Summary: Rose reunites with the Doctor... yet something is wrong with this picture.
1. Curse of the Lonely

Everything was quiet. Martha had just left. The Doctor would miss her. At the moment, he was kicking himself for how he treated her. He should have noticed her more, treat her as a friend and companion not a mere passenger.

But in his two hearts, he deeply missed his first companion. Rose. She was beautiful, smart, and feisty at times. Best of all, she always knew what to say, and did what she knew was right. The TARDIS felt empty without her. But it was his fault she was gone. He could not stop her. Could not save her.

That, he remembered, was one of his reason for keeping his distance from Martha. He was a danger to everyone no matter what good he did. Martha almost died several times, and Rose,... he would never be able to see her again.

He patted the TARDIS machinery, saying, "Just you and me old girl. Where to now? All of time and space..."

The Doctor paused, unable to continue his train of thought. He was so lonely. The curse of the Timelords.

"No more companions. I hate being alone, but I can't have another Rose. I refuse to lose anyone else." he sighed.

The Doctor's screen beeped.

"Hello, what's this?"

Suddenly, the TARDIS lurched, sending the Doctor flying.

"What are you doing?" he cried out.


	2. Bad TARDIS!

The Doctor couldn't keep his balance.

"Bad TARDIS!" he shouted.

But no matter how he tried, the TARDIS wouldn't stop what it was doing.

Suddenly, the TARDIS landed hard, the impact sending the Doctor flying. Rubbing his head, he slowly stood up. He walked to the door and opened it slightly.

"Where or when are we? Or both? Wait..." the Doctor pondered.

He shut the door and went over to the controls. His screen lit up.

"Unknown? _Unknown_? What is wrong old girl? First all those bumpy wumpies and not a clue where we are..." he said.

The Doctor hesitately left the TARDIS to survey the area. Whenever the TARDIS had landed, the Doctor didn't recognize it.

"Why here?" he asked himself.

The Doctor took out his sonic screwdriver, just in case. Even though his instincts told him that he should get back into the TARDIS, curiousity as always got the better of him.

"There's nothing here!" exclaimed the Doctor.

The Doctor headed inside and tried to start up the TARDIS. The engine sputtered and stopped.

"Well that's fantastic!" he said with a sigh.

He walked to the door of the TARDIS and again stepped out.

"This is truly _puzzling_. You think I'd be used to this by now." the Doctor said, scratching his head.

He stood there, tapping his foot.

"Okay, you can all come out now, whoever you are!"

Silence.

"OLLY OLLY OXEN FREE!" he shouted.

Silence still. Looking around, he noticed nothing.

"But then again, not the best place to play hide and seek."

Quiet. The Doctor was going mad.

"WHAT AM I DOING HERE?" he roared.

"Oi, no need to yell Doctor."

The Doctor froze. That voice,

"No, it can't be."

"You still talk to yourself huh?"


	3. The Discovered Moon

The Doctor turned. When he saw the speaker, he stared, and it was like time had stopped.

"Hello Doctor."

Rose Tyler. She didn't waste another moment, for she was racing to him. When she reached him, she embraced him like she never wanted to let go. The Doctor hestitantly embraced her back.

She removed herself from the hug and had a concerned look on her face.

"What's wrong?" Rose asked.

"What is going on? Where am I and how are you here? Did I somehow end up in your universe?"

Rose stepped back slightly, disappointment on her face.

"Does it matter? I've been waiting to see you for a long time."

The Doctor looked at her as if he wasn't seeing her properly.

"No, we are not in a parellel universe." she said, looking for a reaction.

"Then where are we?"

"We are on Beta Moon."

"Beta moon? Beta Moon? I've never heard of it."

"It was a recent discovery. Welcome to the year 3444, Doctor."

The Doctor looked around at the barren moon.

"But none of this makes sense. Is there no life here? And how on earth did you get here?"

Rose held the device her father used to transport them both to the parellel universe.

"We got to power it up for a while. I only have 24 hours to get back. It was one hell of an effort. Dad promised I could come and go more soon."

"Rose, you can't...you could rip the fabric of time."

Tears welled up in Rose's face.

"I thought you would want to see me. And I need your help. I saw what was happening and found a way here. I knew I'd run into you but..."

This time the Doctor hugged her first.

"I'm sorry Rose, I didn't mean to say it like that. I'm always happy to see you."

"I know, but it's not the same without you. Doctor."

"Nor without you."

The two removed themselves.

"So what is going on?" inquired the Doctor.

"Zygons."

"Sorry, what? Zygons?"

"Yes."

"But why here?"

"It is their headquarters. It is believed before this moon was discovered they have been using it as a secret base."

"I can see why. Well, they did a good job, can't see anything! _Brillant_! Find a place that has been lifeless for years and years, and hide. It's so brillant! The only problem is now I know it's here, and I'm more brillant."

Rose smiled.

"How will we find their base Doctor?"

The Doctor whipped out his trusty sonic screwdriver from his coat. He scanned the area and looked at the bulb of blue light.

"It's underground. But there's underground on the moon? Let's get in the TARDIS, unless we want to dig."

Rose nodded and they got into the TARDIS.


	4. It's Quiet, Too Quiet

_Whirrrrr whirrrrr whirrr_

The TARDIS materialized into a storage room. The Doctor rushed to the door, halting Rose. He, as subtle as he could, opened the door and peeked out.

"No signs of any life, Zygon or otherwise. We have to be very careful, they can change into any form." said the Doctor.

"How can we tell who is a Zygon or who is not?" Rose inquired.

"For starters, they must get the necessary body print every two hours or it fades." the Doctor.

"And?"

"Their body odor."

"Excuse me?"

"Zygons smell of earth and iron."

"Earth and Iron? Not exactly familiar scents."

"Worse case scenario, we try my trusty sonic screwdriver and hope it works."

Rose was still puzzled.

"Come on." said the Doctor, beckoning her with his hand.

"What is the plan?" asked Rose.

"Easy. Figure out their plan, stop them and save all the victims they use for body printing."

"Easy?"

"Well, the details of it are easy, the execution... well, probably a lot of running will be involved."

"I missed all this."

"So, ready to run?"

"Of course."

"Allons-y!"

He grabbed Rose's hand and they ran to the exit door of the room. The Doctor opened it with his sonic screwdriver and they cautiously walked through it. The lights were very dim. Droplets of water were coming from the ceiling.

The Doctor whispered, "Another thing about Zygons, they have suction cups on their heads. One touch and you will be poisoned. Stay away from them at all costs."

"Got it. But Doctor, it is too quiet."

Rose was right. The only noise was _drip drip_. They stopped and carefully looked around.

"Where are all the guards? This is way too easy..." said the Doctor.

Rose shrugged and started to walk forward. The Doctor grabbed her arm, shaking his head.

"Just because we don't see anyone or anything doesn't guarantee there are not traps."

"Oh. Right. Didn't think."

They cautiously continued until they reached another door. Pausing, they looked at each other, and entered to see a bunch of scientists. They turned to look at who was entering.

"Oh, hello." said the Doctor nervously.


End file.
